Kids who underestimate their popularity more likely to be bullies

Children who overestimate their popularity are less aggressive and are less likely to be bullies than those who underestimate their quantity of friends, a new research has revealed.

The study conducted by Jennifer Watling Neal, an assistant professor of psychology at Michigan State University, found that children who were more accurate in their assessment of their number of friends or who underestimated their quantity of friends compared to peer report were more aggressive.

The research suggested that there are certain types of positive perceptual biases that have a 'bright side'.

The study's co-author said that when kids say they have more friends than their peers say they have, those children are actually less aggressive.

This finding was true for both overtly (e.g., hitting, kicking, or threatening to beat up others) and relationally (e.g., excluding others or spreading rumors) aggressive behavior.

The study relied on a survey of 421, mostly African American, second through fourth graders from five public elementary schools in an urban midwestern city.

The survey, which was administered in individual classrooms, provided students with the opportunity to identify their friends and the friends of their peers in the class in which they were surveyed. Students also identified classmates who were bullies.

Neal said that the reason for such behaviour can be that kids who overestimate their social connections may also perceive that more peers are watching and judging their behaviours.

Another possible reason is that students who overestimate their social connections may be nice, sociable kids who believe they are friends with everyone.

The study is to be presented at the 108th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association.